When Jeng Tsuen-chyi (
But one year on, city councilors and reporters have given Jeng a thumbs up, saying he has proved to his critics that he can still speak for the rights of labor from within the establishment.
"He has retained his trait of fighting against injustice while at the same time showing great professionalism in handling labor issues," said Alex Fai (費鴻泰), deputy speaker of the Taipei City Council.
After attending two rounds of labor dispute negotiations presided over by Jeng, Fai said he was impressed by Jeng's knowledge of labor laws and regulations as well as his determination to settle disputes.
Fai is not alone. In a recent survey conducted among 46 city councilors, Jeng's bureau came in second place on a ranking of the most outstanding bureaus in the city government. In another survey conducted among 104 city reporters, Jeng came in third among 34 high-ranking city officials of Ma's administration who were reviewed.
Jeffrey Hsu (
Citing the recent debate over whether the city government is entitled to ban betel nut chewing in public as an example, Hsu said Jeng had the courage to oppose the proposal brought up by the health bureau to ban betel nut chewing in public.
"He is able to argue against the proposal from a different perspective, representing the views of the blue-collared working class," Hsu said, adding that Jeng's determination even convinced him as someone who was originally supportive of the proposal.
"He always confines the discussion to the matter at hand [without personal attacks]," Hsu said.
But Jeng's response to the two surveys was low-key. "I am simply doing my best," Jeng said.
Jeng, who received a master's degree in organizational development at Harvard, used to work as a reporter covering labor news before joining the labor movement. He is no stranger to leading street demonstrations against the establishment.
In 1995, as the convener of the Workers' Legislative Action Committee (工人立法行動委員會), he helped organize a large-scale march of more than 4,000 workers to the Presidential Office urging candidates in Taiwan's first direct presidential elections to improve workers' welfare and rights.
Jeng said many people tended to view him and other social activists as "marginal" or "ambitious" people who only complain about the status quo but lack competence to do anything constructive. His decision to head the city's labor bureau was aimed at overturning this stereotype.
"I want to destroy the myth that we [referring to himself and other social activists] are incompetent, and show others that we are able to carry out tasks," Jeng said.
But Jeng admitted that in joining the city government he also had other plans in mind -- to start reforms from within by enhancing bureaucratic efficiency and by challenging loopholes in the existing laws and institutional designs.
"My experience in the labor movement has enabled me to analyze questions thoroughly and to treat the problems and the pain of others as my own," Jeng said, adding that he intends to induce his colleagues to take up a more positive approach to tackling problems in the bureau.
"It will be my greatest challenge next year," he said. "More labor disputes are expected to surface after the presidential election and I won't be able to handle that all myself. So I am eager to offer some participatory training courses for my colleagues."
The bureau will also examine loopholes in the current institutional and legal mechanisms should it find difficulty in solving labor problems through existing legal channels, Jeng said.
Jeng, the only high-ranking city official who always refuses to wear formal suits, said: "My task has just begun."
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